There has been a whirlwind of rebate activity throughout Colorado and for heat pumps within the last year or two, which of course isn’t a bad thing!
Power Ahead Colorado and DRCOG (Denver Regional Council of Governments) has also recently come onto the scene with a nearly $200M grant from the EPA as well, with much of that slated for heat pump rebates.
There has also been some confusion from homeowners lately regarding the actual details and launch date for this upcoming rebate, so we wanted to provide some clarity on all the details, and how you can take advantage of it.
The short version is to clarify: The official $1,500 rebates have now launched, and we’ve got the details below. There are definitely a list of requirements to meet with these, so there is some information to know before automatically assuming you might qualify.
And if you have any questions about these rebates or heat pump installations at all, please contact us here or give us a call at 303.525.4328!
What is Power Ahead Colorado and DRCOG?
Power Ahead Colorado is a landmark building decarbonization initiative launched by the Denver Regional Council of Governments (DRCOG), a planning organization representing 58 local governments in the metro area
DRCOG led a regional coalition to secure a $199.7M grant from the EPA with the goal of reducing climate pollution. The funding was provided by the Inflation Reduction Act and was one of the largest of its kind in the country. Additional goals include:
- Reduction of greenhouse gases and air pollution by 70% focused on Denver’s building sector by 2050.
- Improve local Denver Metro air quality (a big goal of ours too!).
- Lower energy burdens for Denver residents.
Nearly $40M in financial incentives is planned for heat pumps and electric appliances for those who live in the Denver Metro. The program is also planning to help over 2,000 low-income households with sustainable measures such as free energy retrofits and innovative community grants, among other things.
One of the most exciting goals from our end (as a heat pump contractor) is the focus on workforce development in this space, which includes a plan to train over 4,000 skilled people to help physically install the equipment in the green energy trades (not just heat pumps). This is so needed!
What is the $1,500 Power Ahead Rebate and When Does It Become Available?
It’s available now! It rolled out June 17th, 2026, and the heat pump installations need to be installed after June 29, 2026.
What Heat Pump Equipment Qualifies For The Rebate?
The heat pump must be cold-climate rated and it must be listed on the heat pump Energy Star Qualified Products list. It also must meet the minimum efficiency requirements shown in the below picture and listed below as well.
Similar to the Xcel Heat Pump Rebates, and the Colorado HEAR rebates, these are the initial requirements on the equipment:
Ductless / Mini Split (Replaces/Supplements Your Gas Boiler) Cold Climate Air Source Heat Pumps:
- Must meet ENERGY STAR non-ducted cold climate heat pump criteria
- SEER2 must be greater than 15.2
- HSPF2 must be greater than 8.5
- COP at 5 degrees Fahrenheit must be great than 1.75
- Capacity ratio must be greater than 70% when 5 degrees Fahrenheit is compared to 47 degrees Fahrenheit
- $1,500 Customer Incentive
Ducted (Replaces Your Gas Furnace) Cold Climate Air Source Heat Pumps:
- Must meet ENERGY STAR non-ducted cold climate heat pump criteria
- SEER2 must be greater than 15.2
- HSPF2 must be greater than 8.1
- COP at 5 degrees Fahrenheit must be great than 1.75
- Capacity ratio must be greater than 70% when 5 degrees Fahrenheit is compared to 47 degrees Fahrenheit
- $1,500 Customer Incentive
Coincidentally (or planned), the above requirements pretty much exactly map what Xcel Energy needs for their heat pump rebates as well.
Eligible Counties & Area
In order to qualify for the rebate, your home or property must be located within a municipality that DRCOG operates in. These eligible counties include:
- Adams
- Arapahoe
- Boulder
- Broomfield
- Clear Creek
- Denver
- Douglas
- Gilpin
- Jefferson
- A portion of Weld County.
Can You Stack Rebates From Other Sources With This $1,500?
Yes and no. I’m firstly very sorry to you HEAR rebate homeowners – due to laws around using Federal funds for efficiency rebates (and more), HEAR homeowners cannot and will not qualify to receive this additional $1,500 Power Ahead rebate. You must choose one or the other.
The goods news, though, is that you can stack rebates when combined with utility or municipal incentives (non-federal), as long as the total rebates do not exceed 100% of the total project cost.
In our case in the Denver Metro – this means that you can stack them with the really get Xcel Energy Heat Pump Rebates, and the Colorado State Heat Pump Tax Credit.
And don’t forget about the Xcel Energy Whole Home Efficiency bonus rebate program that unlocks thousands of dollars more for critical upgrades such as air sealing and insulation that pair up so well with efficient heat pump installations.
What Does The Process Look Like To Get The Rebate?
As with many rebate programs, there is a good amount of paperwork and checks and balances along the way. This is in place due to federal laws, rules to prevent fraud, provide fair distribution, and much else. Is it a lot more work on all fronts? Yes. But it’s worth it.
Here are the general steps that need to be followed, and we (Just Heat Pumps) help facilitate this every step of the way:
- Gather and sign pre-approval documents. These include our standard home audit and heat pump design procedures, equipment certificates, and more.
- We sign you up (as the homeowner) at rebates.poweraheadcolorado.org and upload of our the details, design documents, project information and more in order to get the funds pre-approved.
- Power Ahead / DRCOG will review the proposal and approve it, and then you (the homeowner) have 30 days to sign and approve the project.
- Your rebate is now prefunded and approved!
- We (the heat pump contractor) have 90 days from the date you signed to install the new heat pump.
- We complete the installation, and gather the wealth of information, photos, engineering and test data, commissioning information, and more required from the program.
- We have the project inspected and we submit the final project documentation, which includes your signoff confirmation that the project is finished and that everything looks great.
- The payment is sent within 60 days to the recipient designated on the pre-approval submittal. This can be either the homeowner or the contractor (defined by your proposal or agreement with them).
- Enjoy your new heat pump and receive the rebate!
QIV – Quality Installation Verification
Part of Power Ahead’s program for auditing quality workmanship and heat pump installations is to conduct random checks for finished and submitted rebated projects. Your home may end up on that list!
If so, there will be a scheduled onsite visit after a full technical review for an inspection of the real installation work. For any contractor joining the program, they are planning to inspect the first few projects in person anyway.
While it’s a bit more work, this mimics Xcel Energy’s program, and the HEAR rebate program requirements as well. Since HVAC can be a bit of the wild west, this overall ensures not only fraud prevention, but longterm performance and efficiency from your new heat pump.
Updates Into The Future
There is a lot more, but much of it is taken on by us (the heat pump contractor) to ensure their requirements are met.
We’ll update this article as soon as we hear more into the near future. And if you’d like help with your own heat pump design and installation in the meantime, please contact us here or give us a call at 303.525.4328. Thank you!
